When the different pieces that go to making up a garment are cut out from a length of fabric, it is desirable to reduce wastage by placing the patterns of the pieces to be cut out on the length of fabric as well as possible, thereby defining a cutting-out plan. If the design on the fabric repeats in two directions, for example if the fabric is a check fabric, it is preferable from the point of view of appearance for the patterns in the design to match at the joints or seams between at least some of the pieces. Thus, in the case of a check jacket, it is desirable to align the horizontal lines of the front of the jacket with those on the sleeve, at the armhole. Similarly, it may be preferable to avoid interrupting the continuity of lines in a check design at a patch pocket or at a pocket flap. It may also be desirable to align the design with certain parts of the outline of a piece or to position the design symmetrically between pieces to be cut out.
In the prior art, pieces are cut out from fabric as follows: after cutting out a reference piece, or at least after having fixed its position on a length of fabric, matching points or "notches" are selected around the outline of the reference piece and around the outline of a second piece, which "notches" should meet one another when the pieces are sewn together, regardless of whether the fabric is a check fabric or not. Thereafter, a pattern having the dimensions of the second piece and made of tissue, for example, is placed on the length of fabric in such a manner that the design on the check fabric lines up at the correspondence points or "notches" so as to obtain the desired continuity in the design after the two pieces have been assembled.
The aim of the present invention is to provide a method and an apparatus for positioning and cutting out pieces from a check fabric or from a fabric having a similar design thereon without requiring human intervention directly on the patterns of the pieces or on the fabric, said apparatus making it possible in most cases for the entire positioning and cutting-out operation of said pieces to be taken charge of from the shapes of the pieces and from a given cutting-out plan, while taking account, inter alia, of the need to match the design on a fabric between assembled pieces, e.g. when making up a garment.